2 Sunday of Easter (Sunday of divine Mercy)

Sunday, April 08, 2018

The fact of the Resurrection of Jesus is not an obvious one for the apostles and it is not easy for them to believe it, based on what they heard from the others and even of those who spoke with the witnesses who saw their resurrected Master. We see the apostles doubting about it, as it happens sometimes to us. But it is the Holy Spirit who comes to their help making them able to act in the spirit of Jesus and believe in His salutary power. It is exactly what happened to the first community of the Christians according to the first reading today. The Holy Spirit strengthened their faith and minds enabling them to believe not on the basis of seeing Jesus resurrected, because they didn’t see him, but on the divine authority Jesus left in His Church. The example of a so called unbeliever Thomas shows us what the merit of our faith is about: “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed”. That means that each of us is blessed because each of us didn’t see the Resurrected Lord and still believe Him knowing that He is not a liar or charlatan. He left His Church with the realization of His salutary work made on the cross with the resurrection as a seal. Whoever does not believe in His salutary power realized in the Church loses everything that Christ gained on the cross. The first fruit of this power is a peace of Christ which was given following His resurrection. Jesus coming to the disciples being in the cenaculum behind the close doors tells them: “Peace be with you”. Let’s us remember how often we have tested this heavenly peace after our confession when our sins were forgiven. This is a sign of the divine Mercy: we receive the forgiveness of sins and a new life as children of God as its consequence. Now, following the example of the Apostle Thomas, who did believe with the help of His Master in His salutary power we can always repeat: “My Lord and My God”. For us however, who unlike Thomas didn’t see the vestiges of the passion of Jesus, it is better to repeat always following St. Sister Faustina: “Jesus I thrust in you” expressing that way our greater trusting to God.